The Psychology of Judicial Decision Making

Edited by David E. Klein and Gregory Mitchell

Description

While scholars in the past several decades have made great progress in explaining what judges do, there remains a certain lack of depth to our understanding. This volume grew from a belief that close examination of the psychological processes underlying judicial decision making can greatly enrich this understanding. The collected essays map ways of incorporating key concepts and findings from psychology into the study of judging.

The first section of the book takes as its starting point the fact that judges make many of the same judgments and decisions that ordinary people make and considers how our knowledge about judgment and decision-making in general applies to the case of legal judges. In the second section, chapters focus on the specific tasks that
judges perform within a unique social setting and examine the expertise and particular modes of reasoning that judges develop to deal with their tasks in this unique setting. Finally, the third section raises questions about whether and how we can evaluate judicial performance, with implications for the possibility of improving judging through the selection and training of judges and structuring of judicial institutions. Together the essays will foster a better understand how judges make decisions, and open new avenues of inquiry into influences on judicial behavior.

The Psychology of Judicial Decision Making

Edited by David E. Klein and Gregory Mitchell

Author Information

David E. Klein is Associate Chair and Associate Professor, Department of Politics, University of Virginia.Gregory Mitchell is Professor of Law and E. James Kelly, Jr.-Class of 1965 Research Professor, University of Virginia School of Law

Contributors:

Brandon Bartels is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Stony Brook University

Lawrence Baum is Professor of Political Science, The Ohio State University

Eileen Braman is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Indiana University

Len Dalgleish is Professor of Decision Making, University of Stirling and and head of the Decision Making program of HealthQwest

John Darley is Warren Professor of Psychology, Princeton University

Neal Devins is Goodrich Professor of Law and Professor of Government, College of William and Mary.

Daniel Farber is Sho Sato Professor of Law, Boalt Hall, UC-Berkeley.

Will Federspiel is an associate at McGuireWoods.

Robert MacCoun is Professor of Law
and Public Policy, UC-Berkeley.

Wendy Martinek is Associate Professor of Political Science, Binghamton University

April Park

Jennifer Robbennolt is Professor of Law and Psychology, University of Illinois.

C.K. Rowland is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Kansas University and Founder, Litigation Insights

Frederick Schauer is David and Mary Harrison Distinguished Professor of Law, University of Virginia.

James Shanteau is University Distinguished Professor of Psychology, Kansas State University.

The Psychology of Judicial Decision Making

Edited by David E. Klein and Gregory Mitchell

Reviews and Awards

"The book is truly interdisciplinary, with many chapters covering two or three disciplines (law, psychology, and political science). Much of the work shows a solid understanding and appreciation for research in other disciplines...This would be a welcome text to any undergraduate class addressing judicial politics, political psychology, decision making, or one that specifically focuses on the role of judges." -- Department of Political Science, University of Kentucky